WMBL (AM)
WMBL (AM) was a radio station in Morehead City, North Carolina, broadcasting on 740 kHz. It was owned by Clear Channel Communications (Citicasters Licenses, Inc.). The station first aired on July 29, 1947, and last broadcast in February 2000. Its call letters stood for "Where Morehead Beaufort Link" and it originally used the WFTH call sign for a short time (1980–1981). WMBL operated at about 1,000 watts by day and 14 watts at night.
WMBL had a local and regional presence, with a 1957 centennial booklet noting it could be heard from Maine to Florida and even to Nebraska, especially during hurricane season when people sought local information. In the 1950s and 1960s, WMBL played beach music, and an afternoon DJ named Bobbie Dennis was known for playing R&B and classic tracks by artists like The Drifters, Clyde McPhatter, and Big Joe Turner.
The station’s sister FM, WMBL-FM, began in October 1972 on 95.9 MHz (later 96.3). WMBL-FM changed its call letters to WMBJ in 1981, and on June 4, 1986, it became WRHT-FM. In 1986, WMBL and its sister stations were sold to Great American Media (now Curtis Media Group). In its final years, WMBL AM carried a standards format under the branding "Unforgettable 740."
WMBL was eventually purchased by a Clear Channel subsidiary and was taken off the air in February 2000 to allow WSCC, 730 AM in Charleston, South Carolina, to upgrade.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 06:29 (CET).